RE-WATCH THE ENTIRE BASEBALL BANQUET LIVE IN COMMODORE NATION ALL ACCESS (FREE)
Meet Coach Corbin and the 2007 Commodore Baseball squad. We've added video footage from this year's baseball banquet. You can watch it (FREE) by signing-up for Commodore Nation All Access. Click to View Banquet

Armed with what many consider to be the top pitching prospect in the country in junior southpaw David Price, and with sophomore slugger Pedro Alvarez, Vanderbilt baseball is primed for one of the best seasons in school history.

After the 2006 College World Series in June, Baseball America predicted its 2007 CWS field, and Vanderbilt is one of the eight teams expected to head to Omaha. These are lofty expectations for a program that has never advanced to the series, but Tim Corbin has had his eyes set on that goal since becoming head coach in 2003.

"You walk through our locker room now and there are things on the wall that have Omaha mentioned," Corbin said. "And so it is clear what our goals are. There is no question about it. And they are lofty goals. But as Herb Brooks said as the coach of the [1980 gold medal-winning] U.S. national [hockey] team, if you don't have lofty goals then what is the sense in competing?"

The Commodores were a youthful bunch in 2006; eight of the nine everyday starters were sophomores and freshmen. The crew exceeded expectations as they made the finals of the SEC Tournament and advanced to the championship round of the NCAA Atlanta Regional before falling to eventual College World Series participant Georgia Tech.

Although Vanderbilt finished among the league leaders with a .308 team batting average, Corbin believes that number along with the total offensive production can be improved upon.

"I said in the first meeting of the year in August that the most important thing to improve on offensively is to get stronger and get to a point where we can get more extra base hits," Corbin said. "We finished second or third in the conference in hitting, but to me it was a hollow figure. I think run production is the most important thing when it comes to offense and that means getting on base. I thought the thing we needed to improve on most is the ability to drive in and create runs."

With so many talented and experienced performers, the 2007 season is looking to be something special for Vanderbilt baseball, with expectations as high as they have ever been for the program. It is a challenge that the coaching staff and players are looking forward to undertaking their quest to reach Omaha in June.

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